Amidst the novel coronavirus pandemic, people are quarantining themselves to avoid social contact. Although self-quarantine is the best way to “break the chain” it does not mean that you are compelled to feel blue. Keep this feeling only for Mondays. Just keep calm and be fabulous. No, I am not seeing the current situation through
The post 11 ways to test “travel+ve” while being in self-quarantine appeared first on To travel is to live!.,

Amidst the novel coronavirus pandemic, people are quarantining themselves to avoid social contact. Although self-quarantine is the best way to “break the chain” it does not mean that you are compelled to feel blue. Keep this feeling only for Mondays. Just keep calm and be fabulous. No, I am not seeing the current situation through rose-colored spectacles. But I am seeing this quarantine period as a rare chance to do things which I have been longing to do for months (well, some of them for years).

Each one of us will be ready with a long list of things to do. Some would want to read books, some would want to watch a popular series on Netflix. Some people including me would also like to do things that would help to relive the past travels or at least cherish the travel memories. I am doing a few things to make use of this quarantine break. 

1) Give the souvenirs the place that they truly deserve 

While we all buy souvenirs from countries around the world with so much love we rarely take them out of the “packets” after coming back. Now that you all have time, you can tastefully display your souvenirs and mementos. You could rearrange your bookshelf and display some of the collections there or you could also consider decorating a side of the wall with your best travel photos. The simplest is to start using the usable souvenirs at home. I had got these very elegant coasters from Bali and fancy kettle set from Vietnam last year. All this while, I have been waiting for the “right occasion” to use them. This quarantine has made me realize that being alive is also a pretty special occasion.

2) Recreate local cuisine

Do you remember the local dishes that you liked while traveling and wanted to try making it at home? Have you prepared them yet? Nope? Now is the time to let your taste buds enjoy the cuisine they loved. I am going to try cooking Nasi Lemak (Malaysia) and Injera (Ethiopia) this weekend. How about you?

3) Expand your horizons despite being in quarantine

While a culture trip (usually a day trip) from the city let you soak in the local way of life, the information that you have is still always limited. Every culture has a history dating back to centuries. No, you do not have to read history books. I have a better idea. Watch a few documentaries on interesting cultures (especially of places where you already have been). There are plenty of them on Hotstar, Netflix and other OTT platforms. The cultural knowledge will still be inadequate though. I recently watched a couple of documentaries on Masai Culture and North Korea and it left me flabbergasted.

4) Accessorize your next trip

Most of the travelers have a ready checklist of travel accessories. There are so many other useful travel accessories in the market today which are less known. You can spend some time browsing through them and decide which ones are most suitable to accompany you to your next travel destination. 

5) Empathy is better than sympathy

Get in touch with your traveler friends with whom you went to that thrilling trekking destination or pick up the phone and call your guide who enlightened you with the local culture and customs of that country. They are the ones who will be able to truly empathize with you. It may seem like a casual chat but it would be comforting at this time of anxiety. Recalling some lovely memories from the trip is encouraging as well.

6) Get organized with your memories

Categorize your travel photos in separate folders to make memory revisiting convenient from the next time. Delete all the duplicate photos that have accumulated and cluttered your photo albums. You can even consider destination wise scrapbook and add more life and beauty to your travels.

7) Take yourself away to travel days

With the news of pandemic dominating social media at present, posting a throwback picture will be a breath of fresh air. 

8) Choose destinations for next holiday

It is always great to look something to look forward to. Looking at the current situation, shortlisting a couple of travel destinations could comfort you. Want to do something more productive? Prepare a travel budget and browse through tips on how to save money in these destinations. Nobody minds saving some money while traveling.

9) Lose that extra fat

Now since when you have shortlisted the destinations, you would be more motivated to lose some weight to click striking photos on the next trip. This is the time to lose those extra inches and look incredible. 

Note: Please do not follow any strict diet. This is also the time to keep your body’s immunity at its best. 

Let’s get a little more human and spiritual too…

10) Do your bit to the people around you

Amid the novel coronavirus outbreak, we cannot deny that the waste collectors are no less than heroes. While the doctors are working day and night to save the patients the waste collectors are doing their job sincerely to prevent several other diseases. Let us try not to overwhelm their services. Try to ensure that you are disposing of your wasted only once every three days. 

A yielding way to do is make your compost at home. Once the compost pot is full, plant your favorite vegetable or herb.

11) If you can’t go outside, go inside 

Work is cathartic, period. However, work sometimes does not give us the time to get in touch with ourselves. This quarantine is just the perfect time to go “inside” and become one with your soul. I have been doing that for the last couple of days and I think I will keep visiting “inside” more frequently now. Trust me, you will love being “inside” you too.

During normal days, escaping the rat race is just next to impossible. Even if we want to do something we love, we discard the thought fearing that the other “rats” around us will reach the finish line faster. This is the time to rethink whether you want to be a finite or an infinite player. 

I choose to be in the infinite game, how about you?

 

The post 11 ways to test “travel+ve” while being in self-quarantine appeared first on To travel is to live!.

,

Amidst the novel coronavirus pandemic, people are quarantining themselves to avoid social contact. Although self-quarantine is the best way to “break the chain” it does not mean that you are compelled to feel blue. Keep this feeling only for Mondays. Just keep calm and be fabulous. No, I am not seeing the current situation through rose-colored spectacles. But I am seeing this quarantine period as a rare chance to do things which I have been longing to do for months (well, some of them for years).

Each one of us will be ready with a long list of things to do. Some would want to read books, some would want to watch a popular series on Netflix. Some people including me would also like to do things that would help to relive the past travels or at least cherish the travel memories. I am doing a few things to make use of this quarantine break. 

1) Give the souvenirs the place that they truly deserve 

While we all buy souvenirs from countries around the world with so much love we rarely take them out of the “packets” after coming back. Now that you all have time, you can tastefully display your souvenirs and mementos. You could rearrange your bookshelf and display some of the collections there or you could also consider decorating a side of the wall with your best travel photos. The simplest is to start using the usable souvenirs at home. I had got these very elegant coasters from Bali and fancy kettle set from Vietnam last year. All this while, I have been waiting for the “right occasion” to use them. This quarantine has made me realize that being alive is also a pretty special occasion.

2) Recreate local cuisine

Do you remember the local dishes that you liked while traveling and wanted to try making it at home? Have you prepared them yet? Nope? Now is the time to let your taste buds enjoy the cuisine they loved. I am going to try cooking Nasi Lemak (Malaysia) and Injera (Ethiopia) this weekend. How about you?

3) Expand your horizons despite being in quarantine

While a culture trip (usually a day trip) from the city let you soak in the local way of life, the information that you have is still always limited. Every culture has a history dating back to centuries. No, you do not have to read history books. I have a better idea. Watch a few documentaries on interesting cultures (especially of places where you already have been). There are plenty of them on Hotstar, Netflix and other OTT platforms. The cultural knowledge will still be inadequate though. I recently watched a couple of documentaries on Masai Culture and North Korea and it left me flabbergasted.

4) Accessorize your next trip

Most of the travelers have a ready checklist of travel accessories. There are so many other useful travel accessories in the market today which are less known. You can spend some time browsing through them and decide which ones are most suitable to accompany you to your next travel destination. 

5) Empathy is better than sympathy

Get in touch with your traveler friends with whom you went to that thrilling trekking destination or pick up the phone and call your guide who enlightened you with the local culture and customs of that country. They are the ones who will be able to truly empathize with you. It may seem like a casual chat but it would be comforting at this time of anxiety. Recalling some lovely memories from the trip is encouraging as well.

6) Get organized with your memories

Categorize your travel photos in separate folders to make memory revisiting convenient from the next time. Delete all the duplicate photos that have accumulated and cluttered your photo albums. You can even consider destination wise scrapbook and add more life and beauty to your travels.

7) Take yourself away to travel days

With the news of pandemic dominating social media at present, posting a throwback picture will be a breath of fresh air. 

8) Choose destinations for next holiday

It is always great to look something to look forward to. Looking at the current situation, shortlisting a couple of travel destinations could comfort you. Want to do something more productive? Prepare a travel budget and browse through tips on how to save money in these destinations. Nobody minds saving some money while traveling.

9) Lose that extra fat

Now since when you have shortlisted the destinations, you would be more motivated to lose some weight to click striking photos on the next trip. This is the time to lose those extra inches and look incredible. 

Note: Please do not follow any strict diet. This is also the time to keep your body’s immunity at its best. 

Let’s get a little more human and spiritual too…

10) Do your bit to the people around you

Amid the novel coronavirus outbreak, we cannot deny that the waste collectors are no less than heroes. While the doctors are working day and night to save the patients the waste collectors are doing their job sincerely to prevent several other diseases. Let us try not to overwhelm their services. Try to ensure that you are disposing of your wasted only once every three days. 

A yielding way to do is make your compost at home. Once the compost pot is full, plant your favorite vegetable or herb.

11) If you can’t go outside, go inside 

Work is cathartic, period. However, work sometimes does not give us the time to get in touch with ourselves. This quarantine is just the perfect time to go “inside” and become one with your soul. I have been doing that for the last couple of days and I think I will keep visiting “inside” more frequently now. Trust me, you will love being “inside” you too.

During normal days, escaping the rat race is just next to impossible. Even if we want to do something we love, we discard the thought fearing that the other “rats” around us will reach the finish line faster. This is the time to rethink whether you want to be a finite or an infinite player. 

I choose to be in the infinite game, how about you?